Port line may have Secaucus service restored soon

Thursday

Nov 15, 2012 at 2:00 AM

PORT JERVIS — NJ Transit held out hope Wednesday that Metro-North's Port Jervis line commuters could see train service restored at Secaucus Junction, their gateway to Pennsylvania Station in Midtown, within days.

Judy Rife

PORT JERVIS — NJ Transit held out hope Wednesday that Metro-North's Port Jervis line commuters could see train service restored at Secaucus Junction, their gateway to Pennsylvania Station in Midtown, within days.

Snyder said Amtrak, which owns Penn Station and the Northeast Corridor line and Hudson River tunnels leading to it, estimates power will be restored to a key electrical substation in Kearney, N.J., by Friday or Saturday.

"If that happens, we'll be in a position to consider stopping trains that now bypass Secaucus (en route to Hoboken), because we'll be able to operate more trains into Penn — perhaps as much as 90 percent of our service," said Snyder.

The damage to the Amtrak substation, submerged in Hurricane Sandy floodwaters, has limited the amount of power available to support train service. The substation was pumped out by Nov. 6, but subsequent repairs have been complicated by a 1930s electrical system that uses 25 Hz current and can't accommodate today's common 60 Hz components.

The shuttering of Secaucus, and the suspension of PATH service at Hoboken, has meant Port Jervis line customers must transfer to buses or ferries to reach Manhattan — trips that take longer or cost more.

The Port Authority, which has restored some PATH service, estimates repairs to the Hoboken, Exchange Place and World Trade Center stations will take several more weeks.

As a result, between 300 and 400 of the Port Jervis line's usual 1,700 rush-hour riders have defected temporarily to Short Line, the commuter bus company. Others are using Metro-North's Hudson line or are driving to work or working from home.

Snyder pointed out that Port Jervis line commuters also have the option of transferring at no charge to the Hudson-Bergen Light Rail in Hoboken and taking short rides to Newport, where they can switch to PATH to 33rd Street, or to Liberty State Park, where they can take free ferries to Battery Park.